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For the Veggie Biker and many an older California sprocket jockey, Bicycle Rodeos at our elementary schools are how we learned to use bicycles for everyday getting about.

The Veggie Biker’s wife, who was educated in Missouri, still remembers Robert Louis Stevenson–Right, Left, Stop. However, our children, educated in Oklahoma, had no bicycle rodeos–or any other training. They learned bicycling astride a 16-inch bike pointed downhill with dear old dad puffing alongside. They have bikes, but do not use them for daily transportation.

Education through Bicycle Rodeos not only promotes bicycle safety, it promotes love of bicycles.

We can do something about this. With the new emphasis on active transportation–bikes, buses, trains and sneakers–we can add the bicycle rodeo to our school’s curriculum and the city’s active transportation program.

The Orange County Transportation Authority will celebrate a green way to get around at the OCTA BikeShare system dedication and Earth Day Celebration 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. April 22 at the parking garage across Harbor from the Fullerton Transportation Center and Metrolink Train station.

OCTA asks citizens to “join us as we thank our partners and hear from OCTA’s Chairman and CEO in moving forward with the project.”

In addition, the event web site promises prizes and savings.

Win!

In honor of Earth Day and National Bike Month (May), we also invite you to test ride our bikes and be entered into a drawing to win an iPad Mini, an annual BikeShare membership, or a GIRO helmet!

Save!

As an added bonus, anyone signing up for an annual membership during the month of May 2014 will receive a 20% discount! For more information on pricing or how BikeShare works, visit: www.octa.net/bikeshare.

Those wishing to attending are asked to RSVP. (http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/3BQXGWD?j=60989079&e=vbuck@fullerton.edu&l=1307058_HTML&u=1106801965&mid=96936&jb=0)

BikeShare is a system of rental bikes placed about Fullerton and other cities by Bike Nation USA so commuters may renat a bike at one place, using a credit card, and ride to another for a low-cost daily or monthly membership. BikeShare aims to have 15 such locations in Fullerton.

An Urban BIKE DESIGN PROJECT plans to unveil the perfect city bike July 25, reports Fast Company magazine.

And readers of Fast Company get to vote on the design.

“The Quest To Design The Perfect Urban Bicycle
This spring, five design teams will compete in the Oregon Manifest’s Bike Design Challenge to innovate on what two-wheeled transportation can be.

“With more major cities adopting public bike programs as a cheaper, healthier, and greener forms of transportation, the urban cycling craze is at an all-time high, leaving industrial designers with a challenge: to design a better urban bike.

“This spring, Co.Exist and Co.Design are partnering with Oregon Manifest’s Bike Design Project, which has tapped teams of top designers and bicycle craftsmen in five major cities to create the Ultimate Urban Utility Bike.

“The five participating teams of design firms and bicycle craftsmen are MNML x Method Bicycle in Chicago; Pensa x Horse Cycles in NYC; Industry x TiCycles in Portland; Huge Design x 4130 Cycle Works in San Francisco; and Teague x Sizemore Bicycles in Seattle. Each will compete to create a pair of wheels that’s safer and sleeker than anything that’s come before, prepared to weather the grittiest of urban commutes.”

NOCBAC will meet in Davis Barber’s office at 7 p.m. on the top floor of Villa Del Sol, 305 N Harbor Blvd, Fullerton. Pizza will appear (contributions appreciated), but it is BYOB.

The Fullerton City Council will hear a report on bicycle issues in Fullerton at their March 18 meeting. This is a good opportunity to address the council of one’s concerns. There is the feeling that the city is currently at a standstill in spite of a potentially supportive council. A good turnout of articulate advocates (e.g. you) is important. It is important bikers who have never appeared before the council come so the Council does not view the usual suspects.

The following is a rough draft of a letter Buck Vince hopes to send to the city council. These issues and any others members believe are important will be discussed at the NOCBAC meeting. The idea is to create a list of three to four items to emphasize.

Vince Buck’s rough draft of his letter. He invites bicyclists to contact him to add projects to this list.

First, staffing. Recently our mobility coordinator, who served as staff to the City of Fullerton Bicycle Users’ Subcommittee and who was responsible for bicycle developments, left for a position in Riverside. Currently that position remains unfilled. I would like to see that position occupied by someone who is committed to moving bicycle policy and infrastructure forward; and who will be listened to.

I am also concerned that in the past few years we have missed out on a number of funding opportunities. Orange County Transportation Authority distributed over $15 million to 30 different projects county-wide in the last two cycles. Only one applicant was unfunded and some money was left on the table.

Brea, La Habra and Anaheim all were successful applicants. Brea has received nearly $8 million for a single project from a variety of sources including OCTA. Costa Mesa received approximately $2.25 million from OCTA for five projects including trails, bike racks, a signal and educational efforts. Even though it was known that much of OCTA funding in the 2012 cycle was earmarked for the 4th supervisorial district (because a “connectivity study” had recently be concluded here) Fullerton did not apply for any of this money.

In fact Fullerton did not apply in either year. And another year is approaching. We need a knowledgeable person to write grants.

In addition to staffing and funding, I would like to see action on the following:

Wilshire bike boulevard. There is strong neighborhood support for this but little forward movement. We have obtained a planning grant, but this will take time to complete and the project could easily and inexpensively be started on a trial basis. Several residents of this neighborhood have asked me when the proposed bike boulevard will be put in place. This and similar routes are critical to the success of the bike sharing program.

St. Jude/Rolling Hills Class I bikeway link. This link has been on our bikeways plan for some time and will connect Valencia Mesa/Youth Way to Rolling Hills. It is a critical part of our north Fullerton bikeway network and it is essential that this be included in the Bastanchury widening project. This should be a prime candidate for an OCTA grant.

Brea Creek/ Malvern Class I Route along the flood control channel from Basque to the city line. This is a project that has the support of County Flood Control but the ball is in the city’s court. This is another link in the Valencia Mesa/Rolling Hills route that would extend across the entire city.

Courtesy http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/sharrows.htm

Sharrows (see attachment). Sharrows are used on bicycle routes where there is not sufficient room to install a Class II route. They are now widely used throughout the world. Locally, I have seen sharrows in Long Beach, Newport Beach, Anaheim, Los Angeles and San Diego. Jay Eastman drew up a draft policy for Fullerton, and the BUSC has discussed specific locations with Mark Miller. Sharrows are low cost and have a high impact. We need staffing to move this forward.

Signage. There are Class III routes that have been on the plan for decades for which no signage has been installed . Also signs are missing on previously signed routes, such as Valencia Mesa and Wilshire. Jay Eastman reported to the BUSC that it would cost $3000 to replace those signs but that a line item was needed to fund that.

The above is a compendium of low-cost and high cost items. We can and should move forward with the high visibility low cost items and apply for grants for the more expensive items. I would also encourage the city to start thinking about the possibility of a bicycle pedestrian bridge over the 57 freeway at Madison, which is on the bicycle plan (which will relieve some of the growth pressure on the CollegeTown neighborhoods), and the bicycle route along the UP right of way; but these are not as immediate as the above mentioned items.

There are individuals in important positions who can help (e.g. Shawn Nelson, Sharon Quirk-Silva). And I believe that our council is the most supportive we have ever had in Fullerton, but it needs to make clear that safe bicycling is a priority.

Vast leaps forward are taking place in other cities across the nation from Long Beach to New York City . We need to join this movement and make our city more livable, more energy efficient and a more desirable place to live.

Jane Rands, bicycle activist sent this poster to the Veggie Biker via Vince Buck, who is also in the North Orange County Bicycle Advocacy Coalition (NOCBAC). No other information was given, but Veggie Biker aims to get it out to you quickly so you can put it in your calendar. If you have questions, please, contact the folks on the poster.

There are supposed to be 15 BikeShare stations across the City of Fullerton. This station at California State University–Fullerton has empty slots for incoming bikes rented from other station, while offering bikes one can jump on for a quick trip to a downtown station on Wilshire.

Fifteen BikeShare stations are in place around town and being made available to the public. However, riding the new bikes is not as simple as it seems. I was one of several “beta-testers??? and have a few suggestions on using these bikes (details on how the system works can be found at on the Orange County Transportation Authority website.

BikeShare rides have sold tires and no chain. You have to stop to shift gears. But that means there are fewer things for the previous riders to break.

If you are used to riding a standard 27-speed road bike or a mountain bike, the BikeShare bikes will take some getting used to. If you ride a beach cruiser, the adjustment will be easier. These are slow, heavy bicycles. The only reason anyone would steal one is for scrap-metal.

The bicycles do not have chains and the tires are solid. They do have a basket, lights that turn on when the bicycle is moving, three speeds and a bell.

The configuration is similar to a beach cruiser, but since I ride a road bike, I found it difficult to control. My first suggestion is to do your initial ride in a safe place until you get used to controlling the bicycle.

Other suggestions:

The bikes do not shift when pedaling. You must stop pedaling, shift, and then resume peddling. Since the bicycle is so heavy, having three gears is very helpful and shifting is essential. The shifting mechanism is a ring around the right handlebar.

The bell is a ring (no pun intended) around the left handlebar. If you do not know it is there you might ring it by mistake which is startling. The bicycles are slow, probably about 8 mph, half the speed of a road bike, so take that into consideration when planning your trip.

The lights work only while the bike is moving, so you may not be visible when stopped at a traffic signal. The front light flashes. It is not for lighting the street but to make the bike visible. Be careful not to obscure it with items in the basket.

Seat height must be adjusted. On the front of the seat post are some marked gradations. Once you know the proper adjust- ment—in my case, 7—you can easily go to it each time you take out a bicycle. Once you know your height, it is probably easiest to make the adjustment before removing the bike from the rack. For the first time adjustment, a rough guide is to have your leg fully outstretched when your heel is on the pedal.

The bikes come with only a few instructions. Riders must get used to “taking the road” and not dodging in and out of parking spaces. Let the car honk. Of course, they don’t rent the helmets

Bicycles can be “rented??? on a daily or yearly basis. (Pay your money and you can hop on and off any bike at any time.) If you sign up for a year — and students are subsidized — you are given a card. All you need to do to take out the bike is pass that card over the sensor. On a daily basis you can use a credit card, which is a more involved process.

No charge is made for the first 30 minutes of use, once you are signed up, or have paid the daily fee. If the bike is returned before 30 minutes have expired, you can take it out again for another 30 minutes with no charge. (You can ride all day, switching bikes every 30 minutes, for just one charge. You really can ride across Fullerton this way.)

When the bicycle is replaced it is important to make sure it is locked in. That requires an extra push. When it is fully in, lights will flash.

While this may seem complicated and the bikes cumbersome, they will serve useful purposes and be a good supplement to getting around town, especially when all the stations are in place.

BikeShare is part of the Green Movement. It is an attempt to get people out of their cars and use sustainable, non-polluting transportation integrated with buses and trains.

Similar bikes are immensely popular in large cities around the world. New York had five million rides in the first five months of operation. Still, regular users will probably want to buy their own faster, more comfort- able bikes.

Commuters should know that there are bike lockers at the train station, so your personal bike can safely be stored overnight. Bikes are also allowed on trains and on buses, so you can put your bike aboard the bike car and have a bike when you get to your destination.

But if you just want to ride from Fullerton Transportation Center to Cal State Fullerton—Bikeshare will get you there easily.

If you, like the Veggie Biker, was unable to attend the Orange County Transportation Authority Long Range Transportation roundtable Nov. 15, you can still fill out the OCTA Long Range Transportation survey. You also get to comment on freeways, buses and trains. It will take about 15 minutes to complete. Bicyclists have plenty of places to write in ideas.

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About Us: A spandex-free zone

Veggie Biking is a news site for people who use bicycles in their everyday lives. We don't get dressed up to go bicycling. We get dressed up to commute to work, or dress down to go to the store. The publisher, Robert R. Mercer, can be contacted at r2mercer@veggiebiking.com.